Business and Professional Women's Foundation

BPW Foundation creates successful workplaces by focusing on issues that impact women, families and employees. Through ground breaking research, BPW Foundation is redefining today's workplace.

How do you help people in my community?

Not only does BPW Foundation work with employers to create more successful workplaces and to help women successfully transition during various phases of their careers we also provide unique education and career enhancement opportunities for individual working women.  Though professional development webinars and workshops on a wide range of targeted career support topics, women across the country have learned from the experts on how to plan for retirement, dress for the work place, manage workplace diversity, retain younger workers, create engaging resumes, and negotiate for better salaries.

In collaboration with Business and Professional Women/USA, BPW Foundation developed a screening process for a new web-based Career Center job engine that encourages employers to highlight workplace practices that are women or veteran friendly.  Job seekers, in turn can search for workplaces that have family-friendly or veteran-friendly policies. 

Also working with BPW/USA, a special Connect-A-Vet Resource web-based center was developed to provide a comprehensive, easy-to-use list of government and private resources available to women veterans transitioning from the military to the civilian workforce. 

Recognizing the importance of education to improve job skills and increase earning potential, BPW Foundation established the Career Advancement Scholarship program in 1969 to provide financial assistance to disadvantaged women, 25 years of age or older, seeking to further their education to advance their careers or re-enter the workforce.  BPW Foundation has awarded more than $6.2 million in scholarships during the programs history.  

Why do you need my support?

Today, more than ever, the country needs BPW Foundation. Our programs and activities impact the lives of thousand of workingwomen and their families.  Building upon past achievements and expanding our mission to partner with employers, BPW Foundation stands poised as a national leader in the fight for meeting workingwomen’s needs and improving workplace conditions. Creating workplaces where workingwomen and men can flourish benefits us all.  Companies that invest in family friendly initiatives have fewer stress related absences, lower turnover rates and more motivated employees. BPW Foundation is ready to rise to the ever-growing challenges for workingwomen with new initiatives, innovative ideas, targeted outreach and expanded resources, revitalized and intensified national impact – creating new workplace structures that not only are more efficient, but also improve the lives of all workingwomen. 

By supporting BPW Foundation, you can join us as we work to create successful and equitable workplaces in both the public and private sectors for you, our daughters and our granddaughters.  In addition to our many private sector partners, BPW Foundation has worked closely with the Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau and the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) on educational programming to improve workplaces and to help workingwomen as they make the many transitions throughout their working lives.  For example, BPW Foundation’s recently released Successful Workplaces Digest included articles by the Department of Labor’s ODEP on career development through youth mentoring and how to retain a diverse workplace. This Digest provides a quick and easy blueprint for workplace improvement plans for use by all employers. 

In addition, BPW Foundation was the first organization to survey women veterans as they made the transition from military to civilian careers.  This ground breaking research has provided employers with a better understanding of the needs of these unique women who bring special skills and knowledge to their civilian jobs.  Of particular interest was the number of transitioning women veterans who found their most successful work experience after military service in the government or non profit sectors. 

BPW Foundation is a truly unique advocate for the needs of workingwomen and the importance of our work is even more essential in today’s difficult economic situation, which disproportionably impacts women and their families.  Your contribution will ensure that BPW Foundation can continue to do the research and develop the necessary programs so that women will achieve equity in the workplace.

How can I be sure that you will use my money wisely and won't waste it?

BPW Foundation is committed to the careful use of all donations and assures donors that their dollars will be spent on research, education and programs to benefit working women and their families.  Every dollar donated will further our mission to create successful workplaces and to the advancement of working women. 

BPW Foundation is governed by a voluntary Board of Trustees.  Board members and their affiliations are listed on www.bpwfoundation.org

Can I Volunteer? How?

BPW Foundation caters to many different volunteer opportunities, including: on-site and pre-event help, in-kind professional services (printing, research, other expertise), Board of Trustee and Committee positions, program content providers…We are open to other ideas and potential volunteers are encouraged to contact us.